This surname BAYLEY was an official name 'the bailiff'. It was an occupational name for a steward or official, the title of a munciple magistrate, which in England denotes an officer who serves writs and summonses and ensures that court orders are carried out. The name also was a topographic name for someone who lived in a district by the outermost wall of a castle, and this situation is complimented by the fact that this name, originally denoting a particular part of a castle, sometimes becomes a placename in its own right; some bearers of the name undoubtedly derived it from the Old Bailey in London, which formed part of the early medieval outer wall of the city. The name was derived from the Old French 'bailli' and was brought into England and Scotland from Normandy, during the wake of the Norman Conquest of 1066. Early records of the name mention Alvered Ballivus of the County of Lincolnshire in 1273. Henry le Baillie of Monmouthshire, Wales was recorded in the year 1307 and William de Bailli appears as a juror on an inquest concerning forfeited lands in Lothian in 1315. Adam Bailiff of Yorkshire was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax of 1379. William de Bailli of Scotland in 1411, appears as a juror on an inquest concerning forfeited lands in Lothian. The Baillies are now divided into many families, the principal branches of which are those of Lamington, Jerviswood, Polkemmet and Dochfour. The term baillie now obsolete in England is still the common form in Scotland where it was used of the chief magistrate of a barony. The name was taken to Ireland by Scottish settlers, and appears frequently in medieaval records from the 12th century. Ireland was one of the earliest countries to evolve a system of hereditary surnames. They came into being fairly generally in the 11th century, and indeed a few were formed before the year 1000. In the Middle Ages heraldry came into use as a practical matter. It originated in the devices used to distinguish the armoured warriors in tournament and war, and was also placed on seals as marks of identity. As far as records show, true heraldry began in the middle of the 12th century, and appeared almost simultaneously in several countries of Western Europe. |
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